Fossil Evidence and Past Environments

Fossils can tell us about past environments by providing evidence of:

• Climate conditions

• Modern technology

• Future predictions

• Space exploration

Scientists have found whale fossils in an area that is now a desert. This evidence supports the idea that environments can change over time because:

• whales can live in deserts.

• deserts were once underwater.

• fossils can only be found in deserts.

• whales have always lived in deserts.

A fossil of a tropical fern is found in an area now covered in ice. What does this fossil suggest about the region’s past environment?

• The area was always icy.

• The region used to have a warm and wet climate.

• Ferns can grow in icy climates.

• Fossils cannot reveal information about past climates.

Fossilized seashells are found in the desert. What does this evidence suggest about the desert’s past?

• The desert was once underwater.

• The desert has always been dry.

• Seashells form naturally in the sand.

• The fossils were placed there by humans.

Fossils of small burrowing animals are found in sandy soil. What does this evidence suggest about the past environment?

• The area was rocky and unsuitable for burrowing.

• Burrowing animals don’t provide information about the environment.

• The sandy soil formed after the animals lived there.

• The area had loose, sandy soil that supported burrowing animals.

Fossilized crocodile bones are found alongside fossilized tree stumps. What can scientists infer about the environment?

• The area was once a swamp or wetland.

• Crocodiles lived in dry, desert-like conditions.

• Fossilized bones and tree stumps don’t provide clues about the environment.

• The area was a forest without water.

The fossilized skeleton of a whale is found in a desert. What does this suggest about the desert’s history?

• A. Whales adapted to live on land.

• B. Fossilized whales can be found anywhere.

• C. The desert was once part of an ocean.

• D. The whale skeleton was carried to the desert by animals.

Fossilized pollen grains are found in a sediment layer. What can scientists learn from these fossils?

• The types of plants that grew in the area.

• The types of animals that lived there.

• The movement of ancient rivers.

• Fossilized pollen doesn’t provide useful information.

Fossils of animals with thick fur and large bodies are found in a region that is now a grassy plain. What does this evidence suggest about the region’s past environment?

• The region has always been warm and grassy.

• It was colder, possibly during the Ice Age.

• Thick fur animals only lived in forests.

• The fossils don’t reveal anything about climate.

A paleontologist finds fossils of large, flat-toothed herbivorous dinosaurs and fossils of tall, leafy plants in the same rock layer. Which environment most likely existed at the time?

• A sandy desert with little vegetation.

• A forested area with plenty of vegetation.

• A frozen tundra with few plants.

• A volcanic region with no plant life.